Pvt. Alexander enlisted in Snow's Battery B 1st MD Light Artillery in 1861 and was horribly wounded in the Battle of Malvern Hill 1 July 1862 where he was a cannoneer, though he was not discharged until 9 December 1862. His right hand was blown off by his own gun according to battle reports. By July of 1862 it was noted that the injured man had been imprisoned in Richmond and later after his release he endured three amputations of the same limb - at the wrist, at the elbow and again at the shoulder. Indeed his injury was so severe it warranted a special listing in the Medical Records of the Civil War with a surgeon preserving the stump after the final amputation for more in depth future medical study. Nevertheless Alexander continued to operate his farm and when he died in Colora at the age of 72 his body was laid to rest in nearby Conowingo, Cecil County, Md., at Bethesda Cemetery under a military stone with no date of death or birth.
Pvt. Alexander enlisted in Snow's Battery B 1st MD Light Artillery in 1861 and was horribly wounded in the Battle of Malvern Hill 1 July 1862 where he was a cannoneer, though he was not discharged until 9 December 1862. His right hand was blown off by his own gun according to battle reports. By July of 1862 it was noted that the injured man had been imprisoned in Richmond and later after his release he endured three amputations of the same limb - at the wrist, at the elbow and again at the shoulder. Indeed his injury was so severe it warranted a special listing in the Medical Records of the Civil War with a surgeon preserving the stump after the final amputation for more in depth future medical study. Nevertheless Alexander continued to operate his farm and when he died in Colora at the age of 72 his body was laid to rest in nearby Conowingo, Cecil County, Md., at Bethesda Cemetery under a military stone with no date of death or birth.
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